


Subnautica

by LogicGunn



Category: Stargate Atlantis, Subnautica (Video Game)
Genre: M/M, Subnautica
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-12
Updated: 2019-09-12
Packaged: 2020-11-02 04:00:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,968
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20615048
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LogicGunn/pseuds/LogicGunn
Summary: The deep space carrier Aurora went missing on a routine supply run to an outpost on P7X-824. No trace of the Aurora or it's crew was found. 35 years later, audio transmissions were picked up by a satellite on the edge of the Pegasus Galaxy.This document contains transcripts of the recoverable audio logs.





	Subnautica

**Author's Note:**

> So if you've played Subnautica, you'll recognise the italicised quotes from the game. If you haven't played it, you should still be able to follow. 
> 
> This is a little bit experimental for me.
> 
> ***PLEASE NOTE THE MAJOR CHARACTER DEATH WARNING***

DAY 0 

_ (Attention. Hull failure imminent. All personnel abandon ship. Launch in 3...2...1...) _

“Mayday, mayday, mayday. All ships in the vicinity, this is the Aurora. We have a catastrophic hull breach and full engine failure. In a rapidly degrading orbit over P7X-824. 72 souls on board. Mayday, Mayday-” 

“Rodney, time to go.” 

"John, I don't recognise these stars." 

“I know." 

“I can’t get anyone on any frequency.” 

"C’mon, let’s go.” 

“The others-” 

“Will have to get themselves to their escape pod. There’s no time.” 

“Alright.” 

“Buckle up tight, Rodney. This is gonna get rough.” 

“John!” 

“Close your eyes Buddy.” 

DAY 0 

_ (You have suffered minor head trauma. This is considered an optimal outcome. This PDA has now rebooted in emergency mode with one directive: to keep you alive on an alien world. Please refer to the databank for detailed survival advice. Good luck.) _

“McKay!” *cough cough* “McKay, wake up! Wake the fuck up, goddamnit!” 

“Hnugh?” 

“That’s it buddy, open your eyes for me.” 

“John?” 

“Hey.” 

“We’re alive?” 

“Certainly feels like it.” 

“...why am I covered in powder?” 

“Small electrical fire. Out now.” 

“Huh, okay, let me just...we need to activate the distress beacon and hail the other pods on the radio.” 

“Um, yeah, about that. The electrical fire?” 

“Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me.” 

“Think you can fix the power? Supply box has a multitool.” 

“Yeah, uh, let’s see...hm...might need to cannibalise some parts from other systems. What's most important?” 

“Life support, beacon, external sensors, radio.” 

“In that order?” 

“Can’t help others till we help ourselves.” 

DAY 1 

_ (Lifepod secondary systems online. Running full environment diagnostic and outputting results to databank.) _

“McKay, come look at this!” 

“Busy Colonel.” 

“Rodney, get your butt up here!” 

“Alright, alright, but if this is just...oh my...” 

“Have you ever seen anything so...” 

“Wow.” 

“It’s all glowy.” 

“it’s called bioluminescence, Colonel.” 

“God, Rodney, it’s-” 

“Oh god!” 

“What’s wrong?” 

“I don't think we’re on P7X-824, Sheppard.” 

“You’re shitting me.” 

“I can't find any land mass on the external sensors. Even if we were in the middle of the largest water body on P7X-824, we’d be able to detect land. And the bioluminescence...I mean, it’s not that common an occurrence genetically speaking. Have you ever seen that much...glow...on any planet in Pegasus or the Milky Way?” 

“Where the hell are we?” 

“I don’t know but my working hypothesis? We’re not in Kansas any more.” 

DAY 5 

_ (Emergency, starvation imminent. Seek calorie intake immediately.) _

“Oh, Jesus Christ, that’s creepy.” 

“Jeepers, creepers, where’d ya get those peepers.” 

“Who are you, Louis Armstrong?” 

“I’m naming it ‘Peeper’.” 

“What kind of name is that? Never mind, throw it back.” 

“What?! No way! It’s dinner!” 

“_That _ is not dinner. It’s an eyeball with fins. We’re not eating an eyeball with fins.” 

“Rodney...it took me half an hour to catch the damn thing with my hands, it’s too dark now to try again.” 

“Look, I know you’re military and they taught you how to survive on cockroach legs and worm guts and your own urine, or, god forbid the blood of your comrades, but I’m a scientist; I can’t eat a fist sized eyeball without throwing up. I’m not...I’m not tough like you.” 

“Look, let’s just...you take the fins, you can heat them up on the generator and eat the fleshy parts. I’ll eat the eyeball, okay?” 

“Okay.” 

DAY 13 

_ (Alien lifeforms may have unexpected applications. Utilizing alien resources is a proven survival strategy.) _

“Hm.” 

“Is that a private thought or can the rest of the class join in?” 

“This fish, with the external lungs...” 

“The ‘Bladderfish’.” 

*Sigh* “It inhales water.” 

“With you so far.” 

“The water inside the lung is pure; it’s desalinated and free from microorganisms and particulate. I think I can use it as a water filter.” 

“Clean water? Hell yeah! Go McKay!” 

“I am a man of many talents.” 

*3 minutes of shuffling, humming and activity* 

“Hey McKay?” 

“Hm?” 

“If I had to be stranded on an uninhabited water planet eating rancid fish jerky and alien-lung-filtered water, I’m glad it’s with you.” 

“Me too Sheppard.” 

DAY 27 

_ (Performing self-scan. Vital signs normal. Detecting trace amounts of foreign bacteria. Continuing to monitor.) _

“What do you think it is?” 

“I’m a doctor of physics, not medicine.” 

“Well, what does it look like?” 

“It looks like you grazed the back of your neck and it got infected. There's no telling what kind of bacteria are floating around in the water. You need to be more careful, it’s not like there’s a civilisation of mer-people on the ocean floor who’ve mastered pharmaceuticals.” 

“Under da sea...” 

“I can’t believe the marines made us sit through that.” 

“i know. I voted for the Princess Bride.” 

“At this point I’d even sit through The Happening if it meant a distraction from the pod’s walls.” 

“I’m not there yet.” 

“Give it time, Sheppard.” 

DAY 45 

_ (It may be prudent to separate work and leisure spaces to maximize productivity. Treat this space as your home, but never forget that it is not.) _

“I found another escape pod.” 

“I take it...” 

“No survivors. Pod’s intact through. Thought we could bring it back here. This cabin’s cozy but we could do with an extension.” 

“Sure, bring it back, I’ll figure out how to tether them.” 

“Gonna need a hand buddy.” 

“What?! No way. I am _ not _ going for a swim in an alien ocean Colonel.” 

“You said the same thing about eating a Peeper.” 

“Well, a man can be driven to do incredibly disgusting things when he’s starving, but I draw the line at skinny dipping in primordial ooze.” 

“Okay, but think about it: if we had another pod we could make it your lab space. No more xenobiology in the bedroom.” 

“And to think I used to be an astrophyicist.” 

“You are a man of many talents.” 

“I’m elbow deep in alien fish guts. Physics is a lot cleaner and much sexier.” 

“You’re the first man to catalogue the species on this planet. That’s Nobel worthy. Chicks dig Nobels. Besides, I thought we could rename you Charles.” 

DAY 81 

_ (It is common for those accustomed to synthetic foods to be repulsed by eating an animal carcass. Remember that humans survived this way for millennia. You can too.) _

“Oh god, not another giant, swimming eyeball.” 

“I call it...’Eyeye’.” 

“John.” 

“Keep your pants on McKay, it’s for classification only. I picked up something else for dinner.” 

“Thank god, this one has a worse fin-to-eyeball ratio than a Peeper.” 

“Here, these are ‘Holefish’.” 

“Because of the hole in its...why did I agree to let you name them?” 

“Because I do all the leg work and you’d name them something dumb like ‘Bioluminescent Aquatic Sub-species 314X’.” 

“I do actually follow scientifically appropriate naming conventions in my classification system...but they are listed alphabetically by your designations.” 

“Aw, Rodney, you do love me!” 

“Well, yes, I would have thought that blatantly obv- uh...what I mean to say is mmph!” 

*kissing noises* 

DAY 101 

_ (After weeks without human contact, it is normal to experience psychological discomfort. Research indicates symptoms may be partly alleviated by adopting a pet, or anthropomorphizing an inanimate object.) _

“Hey Rawd-ney.” 

“Oh, that’s kind of cute. What’s it called?” 

“Reginald.” 

“Reginald...not ‘Dartfish’.” 

“Nope.” 

“Okay then. Let’s take a look at it.” 

“Here, he’s a bit skittish.” 

“He’s also a she.” 

“Really?” 

“Yup. Hm, let’s see-” 

“Wait! No!” 

“What?!” 

“You can’t dissect Reginald!” 

“...why not?” 

“Because she...she...she’s not dinner Rodney, she’s...” 

“A pet?” 

“Yes! Exactly.” 

*sigh* “As long as you clean up after it.” 

“Yes, mom.” 

DAY 123 

_ (Performing self-scan. The bacterial infection in your system has progressed. Detecting skin-irritation and immune system response. Further data required to identify bacterial strain.) _

“John?” 

“Mmm, yeah buddy? I’m awake.” 

“I don’t want to alarm you but...” 

“But?” 

“That rash on the back of your neck? It’s glowing.” 

“Huh.” 

“That’s all you have to say? ‘Huh’?” 

“Yeah, I mean, with everything we eat being bioluminescent we must have high levels of luciferin and luciferase in our bodies, so, you know, I guess it was a matter of time.” 

“That was very scientific of you.” 

“See, I do listen.” 

“There is an alternative explanation.” 

“Hm?” 

“You could have become genetically altered by planetary radiation to produce the bioluminescence yourself. I’m gonna need to take some samples.” 

“Can it wait till morning?” 

“It’ll just take a second.” 

“You know, I have another kind of sample in mind right now.” 

“Oh my god, is that your idea of a line?” 

“Rodney-” 

“I mean seriously have they ever worked for you?” 

“Yes or no Rodney?” 

“Oh, yes, of course.” 

DAY 134 

_ (Consider disguising the flavor of unsavory meats with salt, or locally sourced herbs and spices.) _

“Alright Sheppard, what grotesque and barely edible specimen have you caught today?” 

“Look, Rodney, it’s a Boomerang!” 

“Oh for the love of...boomerang, yes, how very clever, because it’s shaped like an indigenous hunting weapon.” 

“I was thinking toy, but that works too.” 

“Okay, let’s see. Four eyes, you can have those Sheppard, cartilaginous wings, fleshy middle, sharp teeth...what do you eat? What does it eat?” 

“I don’t know, but it wasn’t hunting.” 

“Hm, the teeth are raspy...coral maybe?” 

*squelching noises* 

“Hm, yes, ground up coral in the digestive tract. Lovely. Well, it’s my turn to go first so...here goes nothing.” 

DAY 152 

_ (Aquariums provide an ideal opportunity to study alien fauna up close. Select carefully which lifeforms you bring onboard - they may also be studying you.) _

“Do you think Reginald is depressed?” 

“She’s a fish.” 

“She looks all...mopey.” 

“Maybe she’s lonely? Most species can’t stand to be alone. If they had the capacity to kill themselves, devoid of companionship for so long, they probably would. Maybe we should release her back into her native habitat?” 

“Or we could get her a friend.” 

“If you must but make sure it’s a girl friend.” 

“Well...what if she’s...you know, ‘lonely’?” 

“Hm, well then perhaps we should mover her tank into the lab. We’re probably reminding her of everything she’s missing out on in the bedroom.” 

*sniggering* 

DAY 167 

_ (Performing self-scan. Bacterial infection has spread to the skin and pulmonary system. It is imperative you find a way to neutralize the infection.) _

“Stop scratching.” 

“I can’t help it. I’m so itchy.” 

“Want me to smother you in sea-weed gel?” 

“Nah. It’s a lot better when I'm in the water.” 

“I guess that isn’t really a surprise.” 

“it isn’t?” 

“I mean you’ve been undergoing some changes recently. I think you’re adapting to the environment. Going native, so to speak.” 

“I’m evolving?” 

“What? No! For fucks sake, people don’t ‘evolve’. Evolution happens to species, not individuals. Traits are favoured by mass survival of environmentally caused death. This is not a shitty 90’s movie, John.” 

“So should I be worried?” 

“I don’t know, are you?” 

“No.” 

“Well then, there’s your answer. Go on, go for a swim.” 

“Okay, Rodney. See you in an hour.” 

“Later.” 

DAY 199 

_ (Copper is an essential component of all powered equipment. Your probability of survival has just increased to: unlikely, but plausible.) _

“Are you sure you’re up to it?” 

“I’m fine Rodney. We need the ore if you’re gonna expand the radio signal range. I’ll be back in an hour, I promise.” 

“It’s just that your skin-” 

“It’s not itchy any more.” 

“I’m not sure that’s a good thing.” 

“It’ll be fine, Rodney. I’ll be back soon.” 

“Okay.” 

“Okay.” 

*kissing noises* 

“John...” 

“I know buddy. See you in a bit.” 

DAY 199 

_ (Congratulations, survivor: you have exceeded your weekly exercise quotient by 500%. Data indicates that swimming was your favorite activity. Be sure to vary your routine for uniform muscle development.) _

“John! John! Where are you?! John! JOOOOOOOHN!”

**Author's Note:**

> John and Rodney are the only survivors of the deep space carrier Aurora when subspace navigation fails and it ends up falling apart as it exits hyperspace in the wrong galaxy on it's way from the Milky Way to Pegasus. While scavenging for supplies, John gets infected with an alien bacteria which progressively alters his body. One day he goes out and doesn't come back.


End file.
